The present invention relates to a flashlight and associated apparatuses for supporting it. The present invention also relates to a flashlight support assembly for securing, stabilizing, and removing a flashlight from a device which can support the flashlight in a variety of directions and positions.
This invention relates to a xe2x80x9cthird handxe2x80x9d for a flashlight or the like, particularly for adjustably holding the flashlight in a selected one of a plurality of positions and orientations, relieving the hands of the user.
Mechanics, installers, repairpersons and the like commonly have the need to apply portable lighting to their work and, particularly, to aim a beam of light, such as from a flashlight, on a particular portion of the work while the hands remain free to perform operations on the work or to hold tools. It is therefore often desired to adjustably and temporarily fix the flashlight or other light source in space at a particular location and orientation. However, the light must be attached to or rest upon something if it is not held by the worker""s hand, and it is not generally the case that the work or site has a specialized provision for this purpose.
A common, but convenient, solution to this problem is for the worker to hold the butt of the flashlight in his or her mouth. A variation of this concept is exemplified by Sedlock, U.S. Pat. No. 3,418,461, wherein a bracket is provided on the flashlight having a mouthpiece for clenching between the user""s teeth.
Bacevius, U.S. Pat. No. 4,399,498, provides a clamp housing, one end of which is adapted to receive a flashlight or lantern and the other end of which defines a clamping jaw, and a complementary movable jaw biased with a spring means. The span opening or distance between the gripping jaws can be adjusted for clamping onto surfaces having variable cross sectional shapes. While it is asserted that a wide range of jaw opening is provided, the range of suitable supports remains limited. Moreover, angular adjustment of the direction of the light is also limited in range as well as being limited to one axis.
Thul, U.S. Pat. No. 4,897,768, provides an arcuate track that is mountable with suction cups to a supporting surface. A flashlight is strapped to the track at a selected location and, therefore, inclination. A drawback of the device is that varying the inclination requires two hands for manipulating the strap. Another drawback is that, without removing the suction cups from the support surface, the inclination is adjustable only about one axis. Yet another drawback is that a support surface sufficiently flat and large to receive widely spaced-apart suction cups is required. Van Gennep, U.S. Pat No. 5,573,329, provides a clamping pliers carrying a ball and socket joint for a flashlight holder. A disadvantage of clamping pliers is that they are generally limited to clamping onto objects that can be gripped with a relatively small jaw opening and may cause damage to some of objects, particularly if misadjusted.
Accordingly, there is a need for a flashlight support assembly that provides for attachment to, or stabilization upon, a wide variety and range of support objects and surfaces, and provides a wide range of positional and directional adjustability obtained with a minimum of repositioning.
The present invention solves the aforementioned problems and meets the aforementioned needs by providing a flashlight and support assembly which can support the position of the flashlight in a number of environments.
The present invention solves the aforementioned problems by providing a set of interchangeable attachments which can be conveniently coupled to a flashlight to support a variety of flashlight positions in a hands free environment. The flashlight and support assembly includes, a support member coupled to an attachment, and a receiving slot. The support member and the receiving slot have mutually engaging devices to serve as a locking mechanism. When the support member is disposed of inside the receiving slot, the mutually engaging devices engage, to prevent the support member from unintentionally sliding out of the receiving slot. The flashlight and support assembly also allow the attachments to be easily detached from the flashlight when the attachments are not needed.
The interchangeable attachments for the flashlight are used in conjunction with a variety of applications. One attachment used is a tripod. The tripod can be used to aim the flashlight in a desired direction for an extended period of time without having to readjust the position of the flashlight. The tripod gives the flashlight the ability to have pitch movements so that the direction of the light beam can be adjusted. Additionally, the legs of the tripod can be folded so as to minimize the size of the tripod, when space is a limitation.
The magnetic block is another interchangeable attachment which is used. The magnetic block, like the tripod, can be used to aim the flashlight in a desired direction for an extended period of time without having to readjust the position of the flashlight. However, unlike the tripod, the magnetic block allows use of the flashlight without having to support the flashlight on the ground. The magnetic block allows the flashlight for example, to be attached to a magnetic object in free space, or attached to a magnetic object on a wall.
The belt clip is another interchangeable attachment used in conjunction with the flashlight. The belt clip can be used to attach the flashlight to an object, which can at least partially fit between the belt clip. As a result the belt clip can be used to support the flashlight by attaching it to objects in free space, or objects that are on the ground.
All of the interchangeable attachments aforementioned can easily be changed when a flashlight is being used. By allowing an operator to quickly and easily change attachments, the operator can quickly adapt to changes in the environment in which the flashlight is being used.
The foregoing and other objects, features and advantages of the invention will be more readily understood upon consideration of the following detailed description of the invention, taken in conjunction with the following drawings. Also, the attachments do not need to be used in conjunction with specialized equipment. They are all adaptable to common situations that are encountered when using a flashlight.